Hi everyone, and welcome to our latest newsletter. Although the band has retired from live shows, we will continue to keep you informed of any Whole Lotta Led and Zep related activity as well as what individual band members are currently up to.
Our website will also remain live for you to access information on the band as well as being able to order merchandise.
You can still contact the band at: feedback@wholelottaled.co.uk

As you all know, 2022 was to be our last year together and it couldn’t have started any better with a SOLD OUT show at The Goods Shed in Tetbury (Nick’s home town).
We used our own PA for this show with Nick Worms on the sound desk along with Rob Deery on bass and James Heaney on keyboards.

A new venue for us, the date of which had been moved on three occasions due to the pandemic. Almost a sell-out which was amazing for our first (and last) show there. Once again, Rob and James were with us.

Making his live debut with the band at this show was Rob Wilsher who had taken over from James on keyboards and a fine job he did too.
The morning after this show Lee informed the rest of us that he had tested positive for Coronavirus, the day after that Charlie tested positive and finally on Monday Nick succumbed to the dreaded virus, luckily, Geoff, who had had very little contact with the others over the previous days, managed to escape the dreaded Covid.

Four weeks after the Exmouth show, the now fully fit, band welcomed another new member to Whole Lotta Led family, handling bass duties was Lewis Hall who the band met when they performed at the first ‘PinkPurpleZepFest’ in Spain in 2017. Lewis is the bass player of the incredible Pink Floyd tribute band ‘Think Floyd’. Lewis, a huge Led Zeppelin fan, was more than happy to step into Geoff’s shoes to play some of his favourite music. We recently discovered that Lewis saw the band way back in 2001 when we played at the Metropolis Lounge in Lewis’s home town of Peterborough, I’m sure he would never have imagined then that he would one day play with us. Once again Rob Wilsher was on keyboard duties.

It’s always been a pleasure to play the Tivoli Theatre in Wimborne, and this is enhanced when you realise that were it not for a dedicated local community getting together to restore it, this fabulous Art Deco theatre may not have survived. Mostly run by volunteers, the venue is managed by Charlie North-Lewis who has always been a big supporter of the band as well as being a huge Zep fan.

A packed house at this rocking venue, and with the extra energy that is created when the audience is standing right in front of the stage rather than seated in an auditorium. Being a Yarmouth boy, Lee travelled to Norfolk a couple of days before the show and took the opportunity to visit family members just outside Norwich and also go and see Think Floyd in Lowestoft the night before our show.

An amazing vibe from a fabulous crowd that never fail to lift the pre-show expectation to fever pitch. Playing the music of Led Zeppelin in the surroundings of an old church is simply awesome - most definitely in the House Of The Holy.

You can watch a video of us, taken by Sammy Sanguine, playing 'Achilles Last Stand' at this venue on our last show before lockdown on Friday 13th March 2020

The Swan Theatre, Worcester, another lovely venue that we have been appearing at since 2004. Once agin we were using our own PA with the trusty (rusty?) Nick Worms on the mixing desk.

This is one of the venues the band has played the most, 57 times in total, the first being on 20th June 1998. Although the band had sold out here on eight occasions in the past, this was the first time we had sold it out since the capacity was increased to 600 in 2004.
A fantastic show to an audience that have been incredibly loyal and have ALWAYS given us an exceptionally warm reception, thank you all so much.

Our best show ever here with Lee’s brother travelling over from the Liverpool area to see the band one last time. Frustratingly Lee had a cold, exactly as he did the previous time we played here!

Another disappointing show, again, mainly due to no publicity at the venue despite having sent them a large amount of posters and flyers six months before the show date. Apparently they also had another Zep tribute there just 4 to 5 months before us, so frustrating but ‘hey ho’, you can’t win them all.

Saturday 9th July saw the band return, for the last time, to one of the venues they have performed at the most, this would be their 34th time at The Fleece in Bristol, the first being on 6th March 1998.
Always a great place to play, this sold out show was a fitting end at a venue that had witnessed just about every line-up of Whole Lotta Led.
A big thank you to local promoter, Dave Brayley of DCB Promotions, for all his help, support and loyalty over the years.

August saw the band perform at the Phoenix Festival which took place over two nights in the Abbey Grounds in Cirencester.
Festivals can often be fraught with problems due to the lack of time to set up and soundcheck etc. but this proved not to be the case on this occasion and the show was a huge success.

23rd September saw the band return to yet another of their most played venues, this time at The Wedgewood Rooms in Portsmouth, the first was on 30th July 1999 and then another 26 shows followed.
A large and enthusiastic crowd gave the band a great final farewell to this much loved, established venue.
Again, many thanks to the owner, Geoff Priestly, for his unstinting support of the band over 23 years.

Since 2009 the band have regularly played at The Globe in Cardiff but when they returned to this wonderful city in September it was to a new venue, The Tramshed, which is also owned and managed by the same company as The Globe.
Having built a large and loyal following over the years it was refreshing to perform at this larger venue to the usual very welcoming Cardiff crowd.

A large contingent of Lee’s friends from a local village pub organised a ‘posse’ to come to this last ever Brighton gig. A 500 strong crowd (and the buzz that is unique to this southern city of the arts) were given the chance to say goodbye to the band. Another great venue and staff who always make you feel at home.

Another sold out show, our first at this venue. Lewis was unavailable for this one so once again we had the multi-talented Rob Deery on bass and keyboard duties.

With the sold out show in Newbury behind us we have just three shows left, two of which are in November, the Komedia in Bath and then the Queens Hall in Narberth.
In the past we have always tried to put these two shows together with one in Cardiff, but this year we had to do Cardiff in October so it meant that we would have a free day in between Bath and Narberth…”no problem” we thought, “it’ll give us an opportunity to have a relaxed day off, have a few beers and an enjoyable meal...” little did we know that this day off would bring its own complications. More on that later.

The Komedia in Bath didn’t disappoint and we had the largest crowd we have ever had there with just shy of 450 people, consequently the hall was buzzing with excitement by the time we hit the stage and a fabulous evening was had by all…the only thing missing from the evening was one of our favourite gourmet burgers from the take away right outside the rear stage entrance. We’d spent too long packing up and saying goodbye to everybody and the grill was closed by the time we got there! Oh well, the hunt was on for a substitute and we managed to find a kebab to eat before we started our journey further west as we headed for our hotel just outside Swansea.

After a good night’s sleep and a hearty breakfast we had time to chill out with a few beers, a good bit of banter and then a lovely evening meal, knowing that we had no pressure and looking forward to our show in Narberth the next day.
Repeating the pattern with a leisurely breakfast we eventually convened at our tour bus only to discover that it wouldn’t start! The battery seemed as dead as a dodo. We discussed the option of pushing it down the slight slope of the car park but quickly realised that with all our gear in it we might not make it and instead end up at the bottom of the slope in an awkward parking position. Much manly talk ensued and we also considered that even if we did start it the chances of it not starting after the Narberth show would be disastrous. One of the guys found a local breakdown firm who came out to see if they could help with a jump start... but with no luck, we still couldn’t get the engine to turn over. After much head scratching, and after all of our expert’s opinions, it was decided that it must be a faulty starter motor.
Where are we going to find one of those on a Saturday afternoon at short notice? Meanwhile Nick and Charlie had called the RAC and AA respectively to see if they could help. The RAC man said he could get to us in about 4 hours!! At this point we were discussing the need to let the venue know that we may have to cancel the show! Then we got a call back from the AA engineer who said he’d be with us in about 30 mins... yes!
We won’t bore you with all the details but it wasn’t a straight forward jump start and we did need a new starter motor which our ‘hero’ from the AA supplied and fitted for us just giving us enough time to get back on the road and head to Narberth with only about an hour’s delay for our load in. Phew!

The Queens Hall in Narberth had been sold out for some time and so we had an absolute blast at this fabulous venue where everybody is so welcoming and turned out a crowd of long-time supporters, and new faces, to see our final show there.
We were blown away by the reception of the crowd and the heartfelt sentiment that they shared with us after the show when we came down on the to floor for selfies, hugs and handshakes. A wonderful night that we will all remember.

And so, the 23rd December finally arrived. For most people it was just another busy day on the run up to Christmas but to us it was a very special day indeed.
As we’ve said many times before, when Nick and Geoff started the band way back in 1994 (then named ‘No Quarter’, changing the name to Whole Lotta Led in January 1996) they never imagined it would become what it did, a happy accident which resulted in them touring all over the UK and into Europe, at venues big and small but always to enthusiastic audiences, none more so than at their ‘spiritual’ home, the Guildhall in Gloucester.
The band has played this venue 34 times since 1998, in fact the very first time was on 22nd December of that year and unintentionally started our long tradition of performing there just before Christmas and it was usually our end of year show. With your incredible support we managed to sell it out on eight occasions and in 2004 we sold out TWO nights on the trot - incredible, so when we started discussing the last show at the start of 2022 there was no other choice but The Guildhall.
The show was announced to our mailing list and on Facebook on 11th April and tickets started selling fast, however, even we were surprised at the amazing reaction to the show. By early September there were less than 100 tickets left and within a couple of weeks the show was SOLD OUT. We know that many of you were unable to get tickets which was devastating for us as well as you and we did try to increase the quantity but the Guildhall is regulated at a capacity of 400 and demand was way more than that. Many apologies for those who weren’t able to attend but we do hope to have some video footage of the show on our website in the not too distant future.
The day started with Geoff, Lee, Charlie and Ann (our merchandise lady) meeting up at Nick’s where the van is currently kept. This was an earlier start than normal as both Geoff and our other keyboard player James were both making ‘guest’ appearances so there would inevitably be more time required for setting up and sound checking. We also had a friend of Nick’s, Hugh, with us to help with the load-in (and load-out).
On arriving at the Guildhall our equipment was taken up to the second floor where the main room is situated (luckily there is a lift). Upstairs we found Nick Worms who was engineering the sound for us as he always does at this venue. Next to arrive was James followed closely by Lewis and his wife, Claire.

At 7.30pm the doors to the venue open and an already large crowd start to stream in, so many familiar faces. As 8.00pm struck, our intro music started for the very last time and right on cue Nick, Lee, Charlie and Lewis take to the stage.
For those of you who couldn’t be there, either through distance or lack of tickets, here is the set list:

And before we knew it, it was all over. It was so good to ba able to say goodbye in person to so many of our followers, some of whom have become good friends over the years.
All that was left to do was dismantle all the gear for the very last time, pack the van and say our goodbyes.

It goes without saying that the band couldn't have achieved everything they have done without the amazing support of everyone who has bought a ticket to one of our shows or purchased an item of our merchandise, we really can't thank you enough for allowing us to do what we have been doing for the past  twenty-six years, we do realise we have been extremely fortunate to be able to do a job that we love and so finally we say a huge 'Whole Lotta Led' THANK YOU to you all.

On 27th January 2023 the band met up for the last time to celebrate the legend that is ‘Whole Lotta Led’ (only joking).
To cut a long story short, we had three rooms booked at the Premier Inn in Fareham, these were booked by Nick back in 2019 and way before the pandemic hit, when we had to reschedule shows in 2020 Nick also tried to cancel this booking but unfortunately on this occasion Premier Inn wouldn’t let us cancel but would allow us to transfer the date, well, Nick kept moving the booking again and again as the pandemic continued, eventually we had no need of the booking but rather than waste the money we decided to use the rooms and have a celebratory meal (and a few drinks) with our regular sound engineer, Nick Worms (Wormsie), to say a big thank you for all his hard work with us over the years.
The venue for the meal (and a few drinks) was the Titchfield Mill in Fareham, a lovely pub/restaurant with excellent food (and drink of course), We were all able to have a drink (or two) as we had booked taxis for the journeys there and back. Oddly enough both taxi drivers were well into their music and we chatted about their past experiences and likes, it’s a small world!
After the meal we returned to the hotel and congregated in Geoff and Wormsie’s room for a nightcap (of course). We also had a taste of the single malt we’d bought Wormsie from his other present, a glass tankard engraved with the inscription: ‘To Nick, a sound man in every sense of the word’ - Whole Lotta Led. And so to bed.
The next morning we breakfasted at the Premier Inn before heading home.
Once again we have to thank another member of the Whole Lotta Led family for all his help throughout the years, not just for his sound engineering capabilities but for all his help which on occasions went above and beyond - Cheers Wormsie, we’ll miss you.

Just before Christmas we announced that we would be producing new merchandise to commemorate the ‘2022 Final Tour’, A huge thank you to everyone who bought one of these limited edition T-shirts or hoodies.
We do have a small amount of these left if you missed out before Christmas, these are now available through our website, but be quick as “once they’re gone, they’re gone”.

Whole Lotta Led merchandise

Over the past 26 years we have videoed many of our shows, we used to watch these to see how we could improve the show and which songs worked better than others and whereabouts in the set they should be played etc., we still have a lot of them and recently Geoff started cataloguing and dating them with the intention of getting some of the best bits throughout the years onto the band’s YouTube channel (Father Of The Four Winds).
We have also had requests as to whether footage from the ‘Final Show’ at Gloucester will be available, well, the show was recorder and videoed but it may be a while before we have time to edit it but we hope to upload some of it soon. If you subscribe to our YouTube channel you will be notified of any new content. You can also view the 32 previous uploads, the earliest dating from 2013.

We also hope to locate and upload some of the ‘bloopers’ and funny moments that we know are in there somewhere (Nick nearly falling off stage with his brand new twin neck and Lee nearly fainting - twice - during a VERY hot show in 2012!)

Whole Lotta Led’s Band Van (The Starship) has left us now for a new life. It has been our workhorse for the past 10 years and has very rarely let us down. Thank you for all your hard work through the years, sorry to see you go!

It has been truly humbling to hear all your comments about the band’s retirement and how much you are going to miss us, well, we are all going to miss you too.
Many of you have said “How are we going to get our fix of live Led Zeppelin now?”. When asked this we feel there is only one band who comes close to delivering top quality Zep and that is CODA. They have been around for quite some time and with a few recent line-up changes they are now, in our humble opinion, the best currently of all the UK Zep tributes. The band has built a large and loyal following. Like Whole Lotta Led they don’t just stick to the classic hits but dig deeper into Led Zeppelin’s stunning back catalogue and perform some of the lesser known songs which deserve to be heard. Unlike us they are a lookalike tribute which they pull off really well with replica costumes and all the correct equipment.
We’d also like to take this opportunity to thank Rob Deery of CODA for stepping into Geoff’s place during the past year, it was a pleasure having you on board.
CODA are gradually being booked into a lot of the venues we have played over the years and we wish them all the best. If you see they are playing near you, please check them out, we’re sure you won’t be disappointed.

View CODA's showreel here

CODA's website

Our good friends Think Floyd are currently touring the UK to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the release of Pink Floyd’s ‘Dark Side Of The Moon’. Lee went to see the band at their recent show in Redhill, here’s Lee’s review.

“What a fabulous night with Think Floyd’s sold out night at the Harlequin Theatre in Redhill. I was especially looking forward to the gig because the band would be playing the whole of ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ as part of the show and with their new laser lighting set-up it promised to be a great night. I travelled up late afternoon and met up with some of the band in a local pub before the show, as ever we had masses to talk about and an hour just flew by until it was time to go and get ready for the gig. It was nice to bump into Ju Miroto , she was on the merchandise desk, the last time I had seen her was when she helped to run our merchandise desk at the Brighton gig earlier in the year". 

Full dates can be found on the band’s website.

After their highly successful UK tour last year, Deeper Purple return in April and May 2023 with their brilliant tribute to the legendary Deep Purple on their ‘Made In Europe’ tour.
These guys are the ‘real deal’, having played with them twice in Spain a few years ago, we know what a great show they put on.
With thirteen dates ranging from Southampton in the south to Edinburgh in the north, they should be somewhere near you soon

Further information can be found on their website.

At the same awards show, a certain, Robert Plant won ‘International Album Of The Year’ for ‘Raise The Roof’, his latest collaboration with Alison Kraus.

Further information can be found on her website.

 with John Bonham (and others) singing along - how very rock and roll!!!

You can watch the footage here.

The plane had several owners from the early 1970’s to 1979 before it went into storage at Luton Airport. It was eventually dismantled for parts starting in July 1982. It makes you wonder what happened to all the internal luxuries (fireplace, bar, bed and organ etc.) that it contained?

A few months ago some professionally shot film of Led Zeppelin’s historic show at the Bath Festival in 1970 surfaced on YouTube. The background behind this almost mythical footage and full story can be found on Zep expert, Dave Lewis’s, Tight But Loose website. As Dave states someone had very cleverly synced the bootleg audio to the film to reveal Led Zeppelin in all their seventies glory. 

For copyright reasons the film was soon taken down so only the visuals are now available.
Here are the links to the silent Bath Festival 1970 clips:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlbdKOyEdgU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Va6ovMsJvnA
More crowd and backstage footage:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tysRLGIWmmA&t=599s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ca4nC1Pma9Q

Well, that's about it for a while, we'll be in touch when we have more news.

Once again, a big thank you for all your support over the years.

Take care and goodbye - Whole Lotta Led

Photo credits: Elles Bailey, Martyn Baxter, Penny Bearcroft, Rob Bingham, Andrew Burch, Joan Clarke, Nick Ferris, Clare Griffin, Nick Grub, Lewis Hall, Liz Hames, Steve Hearn, Bill Hiskett, Geoff Hunt, Ann Jackson, Rob Lawrence, Nigel Oseland, Darren Robinson, Dan Saxon, Jenny Wasiak, Jeff Woodthorpe.

If we have used a photo and your name is not credited above, please contact us at 
feedback@wholelottaled.co.uk